Need help with 6yr old son?

I need some advice to stop my six year old son from sneaking junk food in the middle of the night. He’s been doing if for years, and no matter how he is punished he still does it. I have had to take him to the dentist 5 times this past year for his rapid tooth decay. I insist on feeding my kids healthy foods, and occasionally I allow them some cookies, ice cream, but not in excess. He hides the food in his room, down the vents…it’s ridiculous!! Need help asap!!!
As I mentioned, I have been dealing with this for about 4 years, I have taken him to his doctor, and he has been diagnosed with ADHD, but the doctors say that there isn’t any connection. I do have locks on the cabinets, and I have tried giving him a little sugar before bed.. I don’t believe that I should have to remove all of my husbands snacks out of the house because he is being sneaky. It is usually choc, anything sweet that he can find,
Thanks to all who responded..I want to let everyone know for the record that I do feed the child. A few of you made it sound like I am neglecting him, and that couldn’t be further from the truth. I think in his case the door alarm may be our best option. Since I have tried everything else. Thanks again.

13 thoughts on “Need help with 6yr old son?”

Hi there. Does your son feel he is getting his fair amount of foods or see others eating the junk food when he isn’t? A lot of times this will cause them to hide it and indulge when no one is watching. Do they get dessert after dinner? I understand the desire to give them healthy meals and offer treats in moderation. There are plenty of desserts that you can make or buy that taste good and sweet, but have less sugar, fat and calories in them.

I have a lock on my pantry door. It is one of those things that looks like a hinge and costs about a buck at the hardware store. It is high enough up to where the kids can’t reach it unless they climb on a stool. I also have a safety lock on my fridge. I do this because I have a 2 year old that will get into anything and either eat to his heart’s content or make a BIG mess.

I know you are feeding your child and he isn’t deprived…some kids will do this and it could be for pyschological reasons. Try to ask him what is bothering him and why he does it and talk to his pediatrician. Whether or not this is related to his ADD does not mean that it isn’t serious enough to bring attention to. Good luck and hope this helps!

This isn’t typical six year old behavior. You should discuss it with your pediatrician. You should also talk to a dentist about putting sealant on his teeth to minimize the damage he’s doing to them. Make sure he’s brushing at least 3 times a day: morning, after school, and before bed, so that at least his bad habits aren’t affecting his teeth so much.

In dealing with the problem of him hiding food, like I said there really seems to be something going on there. Is he craving sugar? Is it a specific kind of junk food? Chocolate perhaps? Maybe he is hypoglycemic. It could even be something psychological. Maybe you should remove all the sweets from your house, at least for awhile, until you can get the situation under control.

being a kid is all about pushing your limits to see how far you can go, obviously your son has surpassed his. I guess if ounishing doesn’t work either stop buying junk food, or hide it somewhere high he can’t reach, or lock it up so he can’t get into it.

it sounds like your son may be developing an eating disorder. it is possible. don’t buy any junk food. go into his room daily, and clean out any junk that may be there.

take him to a doctor. he may be able to give you more information.

check his backpack when he comes home from school, and don’t buy the junk food. if you have a disposal, use it to rid the junk so he can’t sort it out of the trash can. if you do buy junk food, rig the cabinet with a pad lock, and hide the key where he can’t find it, and can’t possibly reach it.

most importantly, speak with a pediatrician. they will be able to offer more insightful information.

My brother had a similar problem when he was growing up, and personally it’s nothing to really worry about. If it’s the same situation, then he probably just gets hungry in the middle of the night. But hiding it is going past the limits. Why not buy some safety locks for the cabinets and lock them before he goes to bed. If he still gets hungry then leave out something that has maybe some suger in it but is also healthy so that when he wakes up, he will have something to eat. After a few weeks, my brother completely stopped. I don’t know if it will work for you, but it’s worth a try.
Good Luck

i agree with everyone else … don’t buy the junk food. i would hope your husband could skip having chocolate at home for awhile in the interests of your son’s health. couldn’t he have a chocolate at work so that your son doesn’t have to go to the dentist so often? but failing that, i don’t understand how if there are locks on the cabinets he is still getting the junk food?

in the meantime, consider that he just might be hungry! give him a healthy snack right before bed, like cereal and milk or something.

Tell him that if he sneaks junk food he will have to eat a whole steaming plate of brocoli or what my mom would do when i misbehaved she would make liver and onions (yuck) and I had to stay at the table until every last piece was gone. You could also just not buy it. And for tooth decay what my mom did was she would let me brush my teeth and then she would brush them.

What you need to do is while he is at school go to the store and get one of those window alarmshttp://www.doorandwindowalarms.com/doorandwindowalarms.htm They look like this and then just put it on there once you have but him in bed than turn it on just make sure everyone in the family knows so they don’t wake him up and when it sounds get up and get him that will scare him so bad that he may not want to try again!

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